Moving forward
by incurious
Summary: He's won, he thinks he's finished with the games, but in truth you're never finished with the games.
1. Chapter 1

He sits alone on the bed. Simply waiting, he's not sure for what he's waiting for, but he won't risk not doing what they say. He sits silently, hardly moving a muscle, afraid that if he does anything wrong, they'll do what they said they would.

_You see Finnick? This is your family, and this is Annie. You're a smart boy, I'm sure you can figure out what will happen to them if you don't do what I ask._

He shutters. He didn't want to leave Annie, but he wanted her to live more than that. He wasn't sure exactly what they wanted him to do, but he was sure that if it took a threat that large it wouldn't be something he would particularly enjoy. He looks around at the room, it's a very elegant room, it has a four-poster bed draped with gold hangings in one corner with a chaise lounge at the food, also gold. The walls are a slightly darker gold, with crown moulding and everything. There was a couch and loveseat, both adorned with plush gold pillows and art beyond anything he could have imagined hanging all over the walls. It was extravagant, but not more so than anything else he'd seen in the Capital so far though.

A small knock on the door wakes him out of his reverie; he almost jumps off the bed in fear but then remembers his promise to himself not to move. He lets out a breath when he sees Mags come through the door. He runs over to her and is caught in a tight hug.

"I'm so sorry. I didn't know what to do." He says in a quiet voice. He feels tears burning in his eyes but he wills them not to fall. Mags rests her hands on his arms and pushes slightly, he moves back and looks at her. She has a strange expression on her face, like a mix of happiness sadness and irritation.

"Sorry for what boy?" she says in her mumbling voice that Finnick has grown to understand. He looks at her with sad eyes, he's asked himself that question before and always come up with the same answer. He'd killed those kids; their deaths were on his hands. He knew that she would deny it, if only to make him feel better, or attempt to anyway.

"Nothing, never mind. Do you know what's going on? I thought I would have gone home by now." He says in an attempt to change the conversation and at the same time getting to the thing he's really after. She frowns at him, in her way that he knew meant something more than her mask of confusion and old age she showed everyone else.

"Please Mags, I just want to go home. Why won't Snow let me leave." He pleads with her desperately. He's on the verge of tears; he knows it must be important or extremely bad for her to keep it from her. She obviously couldn't take the expression on his face as she sighed and stepped back. She walked away from him and placed her hand on the doorknob. Finnick gasped expecting her to walk out and leave him alone again but instead she opened the door to reveal a man. Finnick cocked his head to the side, he knew he'd seen this man somewhere before. Finnick knew he wasn't from the Capitol as he still looked normal, which must mean that he was a mentor. When Finnick said nothing the other man sighed loudly and rolled his eyes, obviously not impressed with the proceedings.

"Alright, if you're going to survive this you're going to have to not do this anymore." He said flatly, as if Finnick had any idea what he was talking about. He stood there for a moment, when it became clear the man was not going to elaborate he spoke.

"Who are you?" he said in the strongest voice he could muster. The older man laughed, but Finnick saw nothing funny in what he had said.

"I'm Haymitch, District 12 mentor. I'm here to help you." He said through a chuckle that seemed rather forced. Finnick got the feeling that he'd rather be anywhere but there. When Finnick stayed silent Haymitch rolled his eyes and continued with his explanation.

"The Capitol's not done with you yet. Do you consider yourself to be attractive?" he said bluntly. Finnick was taken aback, this was not a question he was regularly asked, or one he thought about often or at all. He opened his mouth to respond but couldn't think of anything to say.

"Uh-umm I. Well, I, I suppose I am." He said, his cheeks turning red. During his interview with Ceasar, he'd commented almost right away about how attractive Finnick was. He'd thought it was strange at first but the audience seemed to agree so he just went with it. He looked back up at Haymitch, and thought he caught a flash of sadness in his eyes before the other man looked away.

"Right, well the Capitol certainly thinks so, they love you. They want you." He says so abruptly Finnick almost misses it. His eyebrows knit together in confusion.

"I'm sorry I don't understand." Finnick says simply, in genuine confusion. He knows it can't mean anything good, as neither Haymitch nor Mags will look at him. He starts to panic; this is what Snow was talking about when he threatened Finnicks family. If the Capitol wants him, they're going to get him. Whatever it is they mean by it, he's going to have no choice but to give it to them.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own Hunger Games

Finnick woke up in the same golden room as he'd been in for the past week. Nobody had come to get him yet, so he'd just stayed here. Somehow this strange Capitol room felt his, like he was safe here. He was sprawled across the bed, not bothering to actually get up yet. He figured he would get up when he got hungry. His thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door.

"Come in!" he hollered expecting it to be either Mags or Haymitch. His eyes widened when he saw the face of President Snow come through the door. Finnick shot up, trying to seem as put together as one can when they'd just woken up.

"President Snow, I wasn't expecting it to be you." He blurted out and immediately cursed himself for saying it. Snow simply looked at him; he didn't look upset or offended, although he never did really.

"Hello Finnick. You look well." He said, his eyes consuming Finnick. Finnick noticed this and shuttered. He was used to this from the Capitol citizens but he never expected it from Snow. He swallowed hard, trying to calm himself down. He couldn't let himself falter, not in front of him.

"As do you Sir." He said and flashed one of his smiles that made the Capitol go crazy. He knew it wasn't working when Snows expression didn't change. Finnick rocked slowly on the balls of his feet, at a loss for what to do.

"I hear you've spoken to Haymitch Abernathy." Finnick isn't sure whether to take this as a question or a statement. He simply stands there with his mouth open, having absolutely no idea what to say. He begins to wonder whether it was bad thing to have spoken to Haymitch or whether it really is just a simple observation.

"Yes, I did Mags introduced me to him." Finnick says trying to make it seem completely harmless, as he thought it was.

"Hmm, and what did he say?" Snow says calmly. It seems to Finnick that Snow knows exactly what happens every second in the lives of the victors. He certainly wasn't making it seem like Finnick and Haymitchs talk was innocent, so why did he need to ask? Was he just trying to intimidate Finnick? All he knew for sure is that he had to be very careful what he says to Snow, or anything he says in the Capitol.

"He just wanted to congratulate me." Finnick says nonchalantly, trying to pass it off as nothing. Snow narrows his eyes and smiles. A smile that sends chills down Finnicks spine.

"You don't have to lie to me Finnick. You don't think I know exactly what Abernathy said already. You think I would let my victors have privacy. Just think what would happen. They are all strong, they can all survive. Do you think they would sit back and do nothing and let the games continue if there wasn't someone there to stop them?" he says, his eyes never leaving Finnicks. There's no way Finnick could form a coherent sentence anymore, he's so frightened of this man he can only nod.

"If I let you all roam free, the first thing you would do would be conspire against me and my country. So to solve that problem I let you all know that you will never truly be alone again. I will know what you're doing every minute of every day. You are mine." His words make Finnicks blood run cold. His heart is beating a mile a minute and he can no longer even move to nod his head. Snows smile returns and he pats Finnick on the shoulder, in an almost friendly way.

"Be cautious Finnick." He stares at Finnick a moment longer before turning around and leaving. Finnick stands there not knowing what to do after that.

He must have been standing there for a long time because Haymitch walks in the door, which had been left open after Snow left. He must have seen the expression on Finnicks face as he placed his hands on Finnicks shoulders nad led him to the bed and pushed Finnick into a sitting position.

"Snow?" was all he said. Finnick looked at him, he opened his mouth to speak but all that came out was a sad little sob. The older man looked at him with such immense sadness, like he knew there was nothing he could say to make this situation any better.

"Did he give the 'You're mine' speech?" he asked, apparently trying to make a joke out of it. Finnick nodded and looked down, he was no longer scared, he felt more anxious than anything.

"What exactly am I going to have to do?" he said in a small voice, still not meeting the other mans eyes. He heard a sad sigh from Haymitch, he was obviously getting tired of keeping things from Finnick.

"Capitol citizens are going to pay to be with you." He said bluntly. Finnick finally looked up at him, some of yesterdays confusion returning.

"Be with me?" he asked, not really wanting to know what it means, but he knew he would find out sooner or later.

"Why do you think they sent you that trident?" Haymitch said flatly, as if explaining this to Finnick was a tedious thing to do.

"So I would win?" he stated, it wasn't really a question. He really just wanted Haymitch to move along with the explanation. Haymitch sighed in what seemed to be frustration.

"They wanted you to win so you would come back. From the moment they saw you they loved you, you never had a chance Finnick. The Capitol gets what it wants, and it wants pretty victors, victors they can buy, victors that want nothing more than to give them what they want." His words burn into Finnick like fire. Finnick finally sees what he's on about.

"So, I'm going to be a prostitute." He states, almost without emotion, like the words don't mean anything to him. He sees the sadness return to Haymitchs eyes, it was like he wanted to help Finnick so much, to save him from this life but there was truly nothing he could do.

"Basically." When those words left Haymitchs mouth, Finnick knew he was going to have to just get over it, just accept it. He wondered then if the same thing had happened to Haymitch, or mags for that matter. He didn't know what had happened to their families.

"Did this happen to you?" Finnick asked, sincerely hoping the answer was no. He looked back up at Haymitch, who had a sad little smile on his face. He looked sad but with a sort of nostalgic look. He met Finnicks eyes and laughed.

"Yes, but I wasn't as smart as you are. I didn't listen, and they paid for it. Now it's just me, no family, just me and a couple of tributes I get to watch die every year." He explained, still not looking particularly upset about it. Finnick looked away from his to Mags who simply nodded at him.

"Who else?" he asks, not really sure why he wants to know. Mags and Haymitch look at each other, obviously they have something else they don't want to tell him. Finnick sighs and sits stands up.

"Well not many people like to talk about it, you know it's not really something you want to go home and tell your mother about, but there is one victor who I think you'd like." Haymitch says, a slight smile on his lips. Finnick is confused again, he said it almost like this person is happy about their circumstances.

**AN: Don't really know where I'm going with this story, it's kind of making me sad so I think I'll make it more fun from now on. I'm sure a lot of you can guess who this mysterious person is. **


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own Hunger Games.**

**AN: Sorry it took so long to upload, been busy and dealing with some things!**

Finnick was sitting at the table eating breakfast with Mags when Haymitch barged, he stopped in his tracks and looked at them with a confused expression like they were the ones who had run into his room without so much as a word.

"Can I help you?" Finnick said not really sure what to say. His eyebrows were furrowed in confusion but a smile sat on his lips. Haymitch looked between the two of them for a moment before smiling and moving forward in the room, He took a seat between them and crossed his arms.

"No, but I can help you." He said the smile still on his lips. When neither Finnick or Mags said anything he sighed quickly and stood up.

"You know that person I told you about the one who I said you'd like." He said quickly, he seemed distant while he said it. Finnick shrugged. He'd said it a few weeks ago but Finnick remembered it like it was yesterday. It wasn't that he particularily cared what Haymitch had said it had been what had come before that that made Finnick remember so clearly. "_You are mine." _Snows words rung in Finnicks ears and sent a chill down his spine. He heard Haymitch continue talking but was still thinking about that day when he brought someone else through the door. Finnick had to do a double take. His jaw dropped. Before him stood someone he'd hoped he would never have to meet. Johanna Mason. The rumours surrounding her were quite frankly terrifying. He'd heard about how she'd tried to make it seem like she was weak and couldn't fight but ended up being a killing machine. He almost shuttered but then realized that he should probably say something.

"Umm hi. I'm Finnick." He said awkwardly. He knew that he was attractive; the Capitol had made sure he knew that, but it still felt strange around girls. At least girls who knew it was all a lie, a front put on for the Games. She smirked and crossed her arms.

"I know who you are. Everyone does. You're the Capitols golden boy. I was wondering where they'd hidden you away." She said, she looked at him pointedly, as if expecting him to say something. He just sat there with his mouth open. This girl, woman that stood before him was so intimidating. He really didn't know what to say. She was only a few years older than him, and he was taller than him but he had no doubt she could kill him with her bare hands.

"Uh thank you?" he said, not really meaning it to be a question. She laughed and sat down. He looked over at Mags who looked at him for a moment and continued eating. Finnick looked at Haymitch who was standing in the doorway hoping he would say something or do something. Haymitch just looked back at him, Finnick raised his eyebrows and Haymitch shrugged. Finnick sighed and and put his head in his hands.

"Hey if I said something I'm sorry." Johanna said, Finnick was fairly certain she wasn't sincere judging by the laughter that came along with the words. He rubbed his eyes with the palms of his hands.

"No, no it's fine. I just… I'm just stressed I guess." He didn't look up but he could feel their stares on him. He didn't want to cry, not now, not in front of everyone but the truth was that he was still a kid. He wasn't ready for this, he wasn't ready to do what the Capitol wanted from him but he didn't see a choice. He rubbed the tears from his eyes and sat up. He took a deep breath and smiled.

"So Johanna tell me about yourself."

Finick and Johanna ended up talking for hours. Mags and Haymitch got sick of them after a few minutes and left them alone. They sat in Finnicks room and just talked. It turned out that Johanna wasn't like the rumours. She was cold on the outside but when she let you in she let you see who she really was. She was scared; she was full of sorrow and hate. She hated the Capitol for what it had done to her.

"So, what Haymitch said to me the other day, about his family…" Finnick said not wanting to finish his thought for fear of the answer. He looked her and she shook her head.

"I didn't believe them. I was an idiot and they died for it. Just like Haymitch and a lot of other victors, I'm alone now. They're my family now, the victors. That means you. I like you Finnick. I'm going to help you." She said smiling. She stood up and pulled on his arm. He stood up and followed her out of the room. She dragged him all the way into the lobby where they found two men at the doors.

"Excuse me boys, I need to take my friend here out to see the world." She said attempting to push past them. They took a step forward and gently pushed her back.

"Sorry Ms. Mason, Mr. Odair is not permitted to leave the building." They said no trace of expression on their faces. She looked back at Finnick and smiled. He narrowed his eyes in confusion, he didn't see how that was something to smile about.

"Alright buddy, we tried. Time to move on." She said walking away from the doors and back to the stairs. He sighed and followed her. He walked up the stairs slowly. She was far ahead of him but he figured he would wait for him. When he got to the top of the stairs he found her sitting on the ground in front of his room.

"God, you're slow." She said standing up, smoothing out the creases in her jeans. She laughed at his expression and motioned him over to the door.

"Sorry, we can't all be as resilient as you I suppose." He said quietly. He walked to the door and pulled his key card out. He was about to push it into the door when Johanna caught his wrist. He looked up at her, confused, to find her staring at him rather harshly.

"Come on kid, what's wrong?" she said, not joking anymore. He liked that about her she knew when to joke but she also knew when she'd taken it to far, with him anyway.

"I just don't like this. Not being able to do anything. If they're going to force me to do this then they could at least let me go outside." He said his voice full of gloominess. She sighed and wrapped her arm around his shoulders.

"I know kid, it happens to the best of us. It's not so bad once you get used to it." She said as he opened the door. They walked through it together and sat down at the table again. The food from before was still there so he started picking at it again, not really hungry just wanted something to do.

"Well, there's got to be something fun to do around here." She said putting her feet up on the table, kicking her shoes off. He looked at her and couldn't help but smile. Even though he was in this situation, this horrible situation, she could make him forget it, if only for a moment.

It had been two weeks when he got the phone call. Finnick was sitting on his bed watching Johanna pace around in front of him. She had been doing so for the past ten minutes. She seemed more nervous than him. Haymitch was leaning on the door watching her as well. Finnick sighed nad fell backwards splaying his hands out on either side of him.

"Nope, you can't do that on me Finnick." She said abruptly grabbing his by both hands and pulling him back up into a sitting position. She raised her eyebrows at him like she was daring him to disobey him. Finnick raised his hands in front on him in defeat. She made a noise and resumed her pacing.

"Look guys there's nothing we can do about it we might as well just accept it." Haymitch said from the door in a bored tone. Johanna shot him an angry glance that shut him up.

"It'll be fine Finnick, don't worry." She said offhandedly, trying to come off cool and collected. Finnick shook his head at her and sighed. He didn't understand why they were over reacting like this. He'd gotten a phone call that morning from Snow asking Finnick to meet him in the hotel bar. Finnck had immediately gone to Haymitch and had gotten Johanna who had freaked out.

"You guys really. I'm ready for this, I'm not worried." He said, hoping he sounded sure. Mags looked him then, not in the way Johanna had been, but like she knew what he was really feeling. He loved Johanna and had grown every close to her over the past weeks but there was still something only Mags could understand about him. Johanna walked over to him, interrupting his train of thought, and threw her arms around him. He hugged her back, wanting the comfort.

"I know Finnick. I'm just worried for you. I choked and my family paid for it, I don't want that to happen to you." She said quietly for only him to hear. She pushed her face into his shoulder like she was going to cry but then she pulled back and sat down at the table. He looked at her and smiled. That was when the phone began ringing and everyone froze. He sat there for a moment just staring at the phone on his bedside table. Snow had said he would get a call sometime telling it was time to come down. Finnick was all dressed and had been waiting in his room with them for about an hour. He just stared at the phone for a moment longer before Haymitch cleared his throat loudly and intentionally. Finnick walked over and picked it up.

"Hello?" he said said, trying to sound strong. He didn't want these people thinking he was weak. He knew what came of weakness in this place.

"Mr. Odair, President Snow requests your presence in the hotel bar at this time." Stated the voice Finnick had never heard before. He cleared his throat and responded.

"Yes of course, I'll be right down." He put down the receiver and turned around. He nodded to the group and walked out the door. He held his breath down the hallway, all the way till the elevator where he knew he was alone. Or the most alone he could be in this place.

**AN: So I have no idea if I wrote Johanna properly. I tried to do her justice but I just don't know. I always imagined that her and Finnick would have been good friends. Anyway I'll try to update this story more regularly from now on. If you liked this chapter, or didn't please let me know, I love to hear from you guys!**


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